An ongoing review of politics and culture

I understand that New York’s insularity and self-obsession is part of why some people love the city, but it’s also what leads to anecdotes like this one from ex-Gawkerite Choire Sicha:

Ran into Mike Murphy, the Republican polical consultant and talking head, at the Radisson in Manchester this morning. “President Clinton? Never gonna happen,” he said. “She loses here, but she keeps trying. She turns into Ed Muskie in a pantssuit. There’s your money quote.”

Last night, he said, he was at a dinner party with a bunch of New Yorkers who all thought the election would be about Giuliani and Bloomberg.

Flyoverwha-huh? Obawho?

(Murphy, to be fair, seems to get it:

“For a million dollars I’ll save Bloomberg $999,999. He’s a great guy but he’ll lose. There aren’t enough cheese-eating, Volvo-driving, wine-drinking guys for him to win…. When he can start a riot in a Wal-Mart parking lot, we’ll talk.)

I once showed up at a Wal-Mart in a small town outside Lexington, Kentucky, and discovered that the whole thing had been converted into a giant, outdoor concert venue. Lights, a stage, the works. And country music! People kept shopping, though. Always a good time for a bargain, right?